Index tabs



May 3, 1966 E. zwoLlNsKl ETAL 3,248,814

INDEX TABS Filed Oct. 16, 1963 INVENTORS. E DWA RD Z WOL/NSK! BY SALVATORE CARL l/VO United States Patent 3,248,814 INDEX TABS Edward Zwolinski, 3526 S. Parnell Ave., and Salvatore Carlino, 3502 S. Emerald Ave., both of Chicago, lll. Filed Uct. 16, 1963, Ser. No. 316,594 1 Claim. (Cl. 411-23) This invention relates to improved tabs for index or guide cards. More particularly the invention is directed to tabs which have 180 viewing angles or ranges so that indicia carried on strips in the tab may be read with equal ease from either side of the guide card. In a preferred embodiment of the invention a tab is provided in which the indicia strips can be read from above the guide card as well as from either side.

Tab devices which have heretofore been constructed include both vertically disposed and angularly disposed viewing surfaces and in these structures various provisions have been relied upon for inserting or displaying indicia-bearing strips in the tab. The prior art structures have several important deficiencies, a principal one being that the legend carried on the indicia strip can be read from a very limited angle only. In no cases is it possible to read the legend both from diametrically opposed sides of the index or guide card and from above the card. Still another shortcoming of the prior art structures is that the tabs themselves are dicult to attach to the supporting guide cards and in most cases machineapplied rivets or similar means are relied upon for holding the tab in position on the supporting cards.

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a simple yet effective tab which may be used in guide cards systems requiring ease of reading from either side of the guide card and from directly overhead of the guide card for a full 180 of viewing.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved index tab which may be readily afxed to a supporting guide card Without the necessity of tools or special equipment or auxiliary fastening means.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a tab structure in which a lens-shaped transparent or semi-transparent glass or plastic material facilitates reading of the indicia-bearing strip carried by the tab.

A related object of the invention is to provide a double-sided viewing tab which is adapted for simple insertion in existing prefabricated tab frames or in specially fabricated card-mounted holders or frames.

A further object of the invention is to produce a viewing tab comprising two separate plastic members adapted for gripping and bonding to each other through a supporting guide card.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a guide tab that may be made in a single operation and of a rigidity permitting iirm attachment to a guide card and having an upper convex, essentially semi-circular face adapted as a lens to magnify indicia on a pair of opposed angularly disposed strips carried by the tab whereby the indicia are readable from either side of the supporting guide card and from above the card.

Additional objects and aims of the invention include the following:

To provide a viewing tab suitable for open shelf filing systems; to provide a tab which can carry indicia strips which .can be viewed from any angle from eye level to a directly overhead position and including front and back viewing; to provide index tabs adapted for one piece molding; to provide index tabs in which the the indicia bearing slips or strips are easily inserted and changed, as required; to provide index tabs which may 3,248,814 Patented May 3, 166

readily be tinted to provide tabs of various colors for coding purposes; to provide index tabs in which the indicia strips may be inserted (or replaced) either before or after the tab has been aixed to the supporting index or guide card; to provide index tabs having magnified viewing from either side of the guide card; and to provide index tabs readily fabricated of rigid, transparent plastic materials.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specication taken in conjunction with the drawing in which:

FIGURE l is a perspective view of the guide tab of the invention mounted upon a guide card;

FIGURE 2 is a cross section taken on the line 2 2 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a modified form l of the guide tab;

FIGURE 4 is a cross section ta'ken on the line 4 4 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of still another form of the tab of the invention; and

FIGURE 6 is a cross section taken on the line 6-6 of FIGURE 5.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown in FIGURE 1, for the purpose of illustrative disclosure, a preferred embodiment of the index tab of the invention. In the preferred embodiment depicted, the tab 10 illustrated comprises a head portion 11 and a depending skirt portion 12. The head portion has a longitudinally extending convex surface 13 and relatively at rear or bottom surfaces 14 and 15 disposed on either side of the skirt portion 12. The skirt portion 12 is provided with a longitudinally extending downwardly opening vertical slot 16 adapted to be placed over a marginal edge 17 of a guide card 18 for clamping engagement therewith. The head portion 11 of the tab comprises elongated essentially semi-cylindrical lens-like body. Formed within the body is a longitudinally-extending triangular slot 19 adapted for retaining two indicia-carrying strips 20 and 21 angularly diposed with reference to each other to form an inverted V so that the strips may be readily read from opposite sides of the index card 18 0n which the tab is supported as well as from directly above the card. The convex top face 13 in combination with the at bottom surfaces 14 and 15 form a magnifying lens providing an index tab that is easy to read. The depending skirt portion 12 with its vertical longitudinally extending slot consists of a pair of opposed walls 23 and 24 which straddle the marginal edge 17 of the guide card 18 for attachment thereto.

The tab of FIGURE 1 may be fastened to the guide card by any suitable means. For example, the width of the slot 16 may be so dimensioned with respect to the thickness o-f the guide card 18 that the card upon simple forceable insertion Within the slot 16 is frictionally retained therein by reason of the inherent resilience of the plastic Walls 23 and 24 defining the slot 16. Alternatively, an adhesive, cement or other bonding composition applied to the marginal edge 17 of the guide card 1S or applied to the surfaces defining the slot 16 may be relied upon to maintain a firm and secure connection between the -tab and the guide card. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, and as indicated in FIGURE 1, opposed holes 25 extending laterally through the vertical Walls 23 and 24 of the skirt portion of the tab are adapted for receiving a pin or rivet 26 therethrough and through a corresponding aligned hole 27 in the marginal edge 17 of the guide card 18.

If preferred, the holes 25 may beV E tapped and a threaded screw used in place of a simple pin or rivet.

The angle at the apex 28 of the triangular slot 19 may vary within certain narrow limits dictated by the optics of the system. In a preferred structure, however, the apex angle is in the range of from about 85 to about 100 and is ideally about 90. The distances along the arms defining the angle are about 3/8 of an inch in each case. The overall diameter of the cylindrical head portion 11 is about 5A; of an inch, the overall height of the assembly which constitutes the tab of this embodiment is about W16 of an inch, and the distance between the convex surface 13 of the head portion 11 and the indicia carrying strips 2t) and 21, as measured at the point of maximum separation, is about %2 of an inch. The width of the slot 16 is about 1/32 of an inch, but this of course may be modified as required to accommodate a preferred selected guide card.

The 90 apex angle separating the two indicia strips in the preferred embodiment of the invention, as depicted in FIGURE 1, is a very important feature of the struc* ture shown. This angle is critical within relatively narrow limits and deviation beyond a few degrees in either direction renders the index tab inoperative for the intended purpose. Only with an angle, at the apex 28, falling within the critical range will there be'180 of legibility of the indicia-carrying strips. The overlying arcuate convex lens or head 11, in combination with the described angular disposition of the two indicia strips, constitutes an important element of the inventive concept of the invention.

Referring now to FIGURE 3 there is shown another preferred embodiment of the improved viewing tab of the present invention. The tab of FIGURE 3 is fabricated of two separate plastic members adapted for coupling to each other through the supporting guide card. As indicated schematically in FIGURE 3, one of the plastic portions 32 comprises a longitudinally extending convex lens 33, a relatively short upper flange 34 and a longer lower flange 35, both flanges being coextensive with the lens along marginal edges. The upper and lower flanges are provided with laterally extending integral rods, pins, bars, or bosses 36 which constitute part of the coupling means for joining the first plastic portion or member 32 to a second plastic portion or member 37. The second plastic member 37 is provided with a longitudinally extending convex lens structure 38 which is in a sense the mirror image of the lens 33 of the first plastic member 32. As in the case of the first plastic member, the second plastic member 37 is provided with an upper flange 39 which is relatively short and a lower flange 40 which is appreciably longer. The upper and the lower flanges 39 and 40 are provided with -through holes or bores 42 positioned for correspondence and mating with the rods or bars 36 of the first plastic portion 32. As shown in FIGURES 3 and 4, the cooperating members 32 and 37 are so formed that upon coupling the members a slot 43 between the lenses 33 and 38 is provided for insertion of two back-to-back indicia carrying strips and 21. At the same time, the cooperating lower flanges and 40 come to rest adjacent each other but spaced apart a finite distance which corresponds to the thickness of a guide card 18 onto which the composite assembly is mounted. As is evident from the above description and the accompanying drawing, the tab assembly of FIGURE 3 is fastened to the supporting guide card by insertion of the rods 36 of the lower flange 35 through corresponding holes 4S in the guide card 18. The bonding of the two cooperating members 32 and 37 to each other may be by a snap fit, a friction fit, by use of adhesive compositions, or by any other suitable means. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a press fit or snap fit is relied upon to hold the members in fixed position on the supporting guide card. While the embodiment depicted in FIGURE 3 and FIGURE 4 differs from that of FIGURES 1 and 2, the structure illustrated provides an effective means for reading the indicia strips from either side of the index card, although the full of legibility of the structure of FIGURE 1 is not realized.

Referring now to FIGURE 5, there is shown a onepiece plastic tab 50 inserted into and carried by a frame or holder 51. The tab 50 consists of opposed convex lens portions 53 and 54 connected to one another along corresponding upper and lower edges by means of integral upper flange 55 and lower flange 56. A longitudinally extending rectangular slot 57 between the two opposed flat faces 58 and 59 of the lenses 53 and 54 is adapted for receiving two indicia bearing strips 20 and 21 in back-toback relationship. As illustrated in FIGURES 5 and 6, in use, the plastic tab 50 is affixed t0 a supporting guide card 18 by means of a double walled frame or holder 51. The frame or holder 51 consists of two edge-connected plates or sheets 61 and 62, each having an opening 63 and 64 for receiving the lenses 53 and 54 therethrough. The plates are provided with aligned holes 65 through which rivets, pins or other fastening means 66 are inserted for fastening the plates and the tab 50 carried thereby to the supporting guide card. While the frames 61 and 62 which hold the tab 50 are preferably made of metal, other materials such as plastic, and especially fabricated wood and paper products may be used. The framing member for the tab of FIGURES 5 and 6 is preferably stamped as a one-piece structure. Upon folding the one-piece sheet along its longitudinal center line 68 two substantially parallelly disposed sheets 61 and 62 are formed, joined to one another along the top edge 68 and spaced from each other about 1/20 of an inch, a distance corresponding to the thickness of the upper and lower flanges 55 and 56 of the plastic tab 50.

While disclosures of preferred embodiments of the index tab of the invention has been provided, it will be apparent that numerous modifications and variations thereof may be made Without departing from the underlying principles of the invention. It is, therefore, desired by the following claims to include within the scope of the invention all such variations and modifications by which the results of this invention may be obtained through the use of substantially the same or equivalent means.

We claim: A 180 viewing tab for index cards, dividers, and the like and comprising a base having a vertically oriented, downwardly opening rectangular slot extending laterally therethrough, said slot being :sized and adapted to receive a marginal edge of an index card therein for attachment of said tab to said card;

an elongated lens-like body integral with and disposed symmetrically above said base, said body comprising a laterally-extending cylindrical section bridging and substantially coextensive with said base and defining a transversely convex upper surface of approximate- 1y 180 of arc in section with essentially half of said arc being disposed on either side of a vertical median plane defined by said rectangular slot of said base,

said cylindrical section having an inverted V-shaped open-ended slot extending therethrough along the lateral length of said cylindrical section, intersecting surfaces forming top Walls of said slot defining a right angle in transverse section, said slot being adapted to receive a pair of indicia bearing strips therein in contiguous relation with said intersecting surfaces, each said surfaces defining an angle of approximately 45 with said vertical median plane;

whereby indicia carried on outwardly facing surfaces of said indicia bearing strips are rendered readily legible as viewed through said lens-like body from above and from either side of said viewing tab to provide a full 180 of legibility.

(References on following page) Referenees Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 521,567 7/ 1953 Belgium. 3/1926 Rand 40 23 1,204,099 8/1959 France.

9/1935 Debs 40-10 7/1941 Jones 4O 23 X 5 JEROME SCHNALL, Prlmary Examzner. 11/ 1962 Woodhouse 40-23 X EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Examiner.

FOREIGN PATENTS 

